Catchers which are removably mounted either forwardly or rearwardly of a reel-type lawn mower are already well known in the art. These catchers are of rigid body construction, usually of either metal or plastic material. Current day catchers are most commonly made of plastic material and are arranged with mounting means for attaching and removing the catcher on the reel mower. Examples of such prior art of forwardly mounted catchers are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 426,984 and 1,798,021 and 2,015,740.
The present invention differs from the aforesaid prior art in that it provides for an assembly of a mower-mounted catcher and reel-type lawn mower wherein the catcher can be cantilever mounted on the mower and be removed therefrom by horizontal motion, rather than requiring complete lifting of the catcher from the mower. That is, in the present invention, the catcher can be removed from the mower by sliding it horizontally on mounting pins on the mower, and thereby the catcher can be removed from confined spaces where in present-day tractor and like type mowing machines the catcher is disposed within confined spaces underneath the tractor or the like. Likewise, the catcher can be readily and easily and accurately remounted on the mower by sliding it horizontally in the confined space. Therefore, the present invention is particularly adaptable to a gang type of lawn mower where a tractor is employed for the support and mobility of a plurality of assembled mower and catcher combinations.
With regard to the aforesaid prior art, the present invention has further advantages such as the feasibility of making the catcher of a plastic material and having reinforcement for strength adjacent the clipping entry opening and also having arrangements for air flow into and out of the catcher and having side handles for maneuvering the catcher. Still further, the plastic molded catcher is of a reinforced and/or sturdy construction in the locations where the catcher mounts onto the mower, such as through horizontally disposed pins which slide into reinforced sleeves or bores in the catcher. Accordingly, the molded plastic catcher is of a configuration which is strong and resists any distortion in its shape and it therefore retains the clippings while it is still mounted on the mower. The catcher construction is also such that it has excellent durability while being light weight and reasonably inexpensive in its construction.
Apart from the prior art of mower-mounted catchers on reel mowers, there is mower and catcher prior art which utilizes pin or rod mounting of catchers onto mowers and which also utilizes plastic catchers and has reinforcing plates on the catcher and also which has ribbing or the like along the wall of the catcher, for availability to avoid distortion in the wall. Accordingly, U.S. Pat. No. 3,805,499 shows a type of catcher mounting which has hooks for engaging openings in the mower for releasably attaching the catcher to the mower. However, the catcher is not removable in horizontal motion only, and it must be carefully maneuvered for removal and mounting relative to the mower. Also, U.S. Pat. No. 3,110,147 shows a plastic type catcher which has plates on opposite side walls thereof for strengthening of the catcher at the location where the catcher rods or hooks are attached for purposes of extending to the mower to attach therewith. Again, the catcher must be raised for removal, and a complete separate plate is utilized for reinforcing the catcher, contrary to the present invention which is made in a molded plastic with inherent strength or reinforcement.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,648,238 shows a plastic catcher which has a display of ribs along the bottom thereof and which has recessed portions along the top thereof, both available for strengthening of the catcher, but differing from the present invention in that they are not arranged in the manner claimed in this invention and located adjacent the catcher opening for strengthening that location and for actually providing a hand grip or handle feature adjacent the opening.
Finally, the prior art has disclosed catchers with integral handles molded therein, and commonly at the top of the catcher, such as seen in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,517,493 and 3,757,503. Here again, these disclosures differ from the prior art in that the present invention provides for the handling of the catcher with handles on locations which permit the catcher to be moved horizontally from confined spaces underneath a tractor or like support for the assembled catcher and mower, and the handle arrangement in the present invention also serves as a side-wall reinforcement member for the body of the catcher itself.